4 ms·

I was a textbook definition of a nerd: skinny, all A's, glasses, bad clothes, took college classes at night, asian in a very white blue-collar town, did all the

I was a textbook definition of a nerd: skinny, all A's, glasses, bad clothes, took college classes at night, asian in a very white blue-collar town, did all the nerd stuff (even math camp!). I went to a mediocre high school with few smart kids. Nevertheless, I was popular in high school. In fact, even as a freshmen I was hanging out with the cool senior crowd. There were many factors: I was never intimidated by anyone, I had a sharp wit, I never made others feel dumb, I didn't take any jokes personally. The big thing is body language. If you walk around like Clint Eastwood, people assume you're cool. Even when I moved to a big city, thuggish guys assumed I was one of them. My advice: just pretend that you're cool. First impressions and body language matter a lot. It works for my friend, too. She's a small girl, but big, loud, obnoxious Wall St. traders are intimidated by her when she walks into a meeting. She exudes a self-confidence that makes them shut up and listen. If it works for a skinny nerd and a 5ft girl, it's gotta work for you dweebs, too.

wallflower 18y ago
At my high school, the first Friday the 13th is the unofficial Freshman Day where they pick on the Freshman. As a new Freshman, I was even more scrawny and way less confident back then but when I walked past the cafeteria, I overheard a bunch of jocks/seniors hanging out (behind me) say "C'mon. He's got to be a freshman" - I walked past with my head up confidently and didn't look back. I didn't get picked on that day - other people I knew who were of my build were thrown in trash cans, etc. High school sucks. But then you graduate. High school is a geographic coincidence.
eugenejen 18y ago
I think this is not pretending. But you just tell yourself "being the cool". It is the same thing like actors project characters into themselves by "being the characters". And the better the actor is, the difficult we can see pretension. Or you can see this from existentialism like Martin Heidegger's idea about a carpenter himself can't distinguish himself from his tools. He just can perform carpentry effortlessly.

wallflower 18y ago

At my high school, the first Friday the 13th is the unofficial Freshman Day where they pick on the Freshman. As a new Freshman, I was even more scrawny and way less confident back then but when I walked past the cafeteria, I overheard a bunch of jocks/seniors hanging out (behind me) say "C'mon. He's got to be a freshman" - I walked past with my head up confidently and didn't look back. I didn't get picked on that day - other people I knew who were of my build were thrown in trash cans, etc. High school sucks. But then you graduate. High school is a geographic coincidence.

eugenejen 18y ago

I think this is not pretending. But you just tell yourself "being the cool". It is the same thing like actors project characters into themselves by "being the characters". And the better the actor is, the difficult we can see pretension. Or you can see this from existentialism like Martin Heidegger's idea about a carpenter himself can't distinguish himself from his tools. He just can perform carpentry effortlessly.